The 10 year collaboration between RIKEN, the Japanese Institute of Physical and Chemical Research, and the UK Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL) to create an intense muon source has been renewed for another 10 years. There are also plans to continue development and expansion of the joint facility.
The first large-scale scientific partnership between the UK and Japan, it develops and exploits a world-class muon facility at the RAL Isis pulsed neutron and muon source.
Isis is the world’s most intense source of pulsed muons. Muons can be used to explore matter at the microscopic scale, acting as implanted “spies” to help to understand better the internal workings of materials. Such information can help to develop new materials for specific applications. Muons are also used for fundamental physics studies and possible energy production via muon catalysed fusion.
A further £2 million investment will see expansion of the muon source for the development of new methods to increase the effectiveness of muons for analysing matter.
